Creepy, chaotic, corrupt, charismatic. Yup, these cult leaders were all that and more. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at charismatic cult leaders who used their charm to deceive and manipulate their followers.
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00:00-"By offering the right package, you can control people's minds."
00:04Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at charismatic cult leaders who use their charm to deceive and manipulate their followers.
00:11-"At the time, he was known as Vernon Howe, and he was involved in a deadly dispute for control of the Branch Davidian sect."
00:20Marshall Applewhite.
00:22-"It is Christmas, and we see a kind of family bustling with activity."
00:26Often characterized as a UFO religion, Heaven's Gate was a reclusive group.
00:31Under the guidance of founder Marshall Applewhite, members lived by a philosophy that blended science fiction with biblical ideas.
00:37From an early age, Applewhite was a gifted orator.
00:40He was also a natural leader, often heading organizations and clubs in school.
00:44According to his sister, Applewhite could convince anyone to believe anything, and that is just what he did.
00:51-"These people who are laughing, 24 or 48 hours later, ingest poisonous barbiturates and kill themselves with bags tied over their heads."
00:59He proclaimed himself a prophet, and began amassing loyal followers.
01:03When he told those followers that a passing comment would free them from their earthly bonds and allow them to transcend to the next level, they believed him.
01:11The only way to achieve this was to take their own lives, which sadly, they did.
01:16-"39 bodies, all dressed in ritualistic fashion, were found inside, each the victim of a lethal concoction of drugs."
01:24David Berg.
01:25-"He used scripture and he used spiritual principles to excuse his behavior."
01:31From the outside, the Children of God appeared to be a New Age Christian group that espoused biblical teachings and a naturalistic lifestyle.
01:38But beneath the surface lurked a darker truth.
01:41Founded by David Berg, an evangelical preacher with a knack for appealing to young people through empathy,
01:46the sect began as a small group for runaways and hippies.
01:50It soon blossomed into an international cult.
01:53-"Please come into my heart. I believe you're the son of God. I believe you died for me. Please forgive me of my sins."
02:01Berg brainwashed his followers to believe their bodies were not their own.
02:05They were expected to give themselves freely to other people.
02:08Allegations of abuse grew until authorities launched an investigation.
02:12But Berg died before it concluded.
02:15His charismatic appeal persists decades after his death.
02:18A version of the cult still exists, operating as an online network spanning 80 countries.
02:24-"She was raised in the infamous Children of God cult, now known as the Family International."
02:31Gwen Shamblin.
02:32-"Was her ministry about God or was it about Gwen?"
02:36Weigh Down Ministries is part weight loss program, part evangelical church.
02:41Following the success of her faith-based weight loss book,
02:44Gwen Shamblin founded the Remnant Fellowship Church in 1999.
02:48Members were encouraged to lose weight and keep it off.
02:51The core of her weight loss program was based on simple portion control.
02:54But Shamblin used her charismatic persona to convince countless people
02:58that their weight was tied to their devotion to God.
03:01-"I hate to say this to some degree because she's deceased,
03:04but she struck me as a 100% phony."
03:08She used her unique blend of persuasion and religious fervor to prey upon insecurity,
03:13gaining legions of devoted followers.
03:15Shamblin courted controversy a time or two,
03:17and the church was even investigated for murder.
03:20Shamblin died in 2021, but her ministry and the church she created carry on.
03:26-"Half and half leaves nothing for Gwen Shamblin.
03:29That's not completely true, is it?"
03:31-"Yes, it's completely true."
03:43Sporting an unkempt beard and long messy hair,
03:46Shoko Asahara was not conventionally attractive.
03:49Instead, he relied on his charismatic personality to gain control of those around him.
03:53He was a gifted storyteller who was able to lure in thousands of disenchanted people
03:58and brainwash them into joining Aum Shinrikyo.
04:01-"This finale is good thing or not, right?"
04:03-"Still, because for a long time you've been saying that Asahara Shoko needs to die."
04:08Considered by most to be a doomsday cult,
04:11Aum Shinrikyo has also been classified as a terrorist organization.
04:15Under the spell of Asahara's blend of mysticism and religion,
04:18members became increasingly violent.
04:20In 1995, the group achieved international notoriety when they targeted a Tokyo subway,
04:26killing 13 people in a horrifying chemical attack.
04:29Asahara was subsequently arrested for his role in the crime, and sentenced to death.
04:33-"Someone said, oh, he's in a coma. The guy was, like, shaking his body."
04:40Bill Gothard
04:41-"If you have not gone through the basic seminar, I highly recommend it."
04:45Despite never marrying or having children,
04:47Bill Gothard founded an evangelical organization that
04:50encouraged families to have as many children as possible.
04:53Gothard's charismatic stage presence, staunch morals,
04:56and biblical teachings struck a chord with conservative evangelicals.
04:59Before long, his ministry, the Institute of Basic Life Principles, IBLP,
05:04grew into a thriving network that included seminars, conventions, and a homeschool curriculum.
05:10-"Aren't Christianity, there's something entirely different."
05:13-"We have, for every one of you, the answer."
05:16At Gothard's behest, IBLP members espoused strict gender roles,
05:20and wives were expected to submit to their husband's authority in all matters.
05:25Gothard was eventually ousted from the group he created due to allegations of sexual misconduct,
05:29but IBLP continued.
05:31By then, IBLP members were influencing politics and enjoying national
05:35exposure through shows like 19 Kids and Counting and Bringing Up Bates.
05:40-"You've probably heard of the Duggar family."
05:42-"Everyone knew who the family was."
05:44Charles Manson
05:46-"I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. You do exactly what I say."
05:49The murders committed by the members of the Manson family happened over a half a century ago,
05:54but are still discussed today.
05:56The 1960s were a tumultuous time of changing social values and shifting perspectives.
06:01Many runaway teenagers and young adults found their way to California,
06:05seeking peace, love, and acceptance.
06:07-"His biggest talent, if you will, an evil talent,
06:11was to prey on the very, very young and vulnerable."
06:15Through a disorienting combination of charisma, drugs, and philosophical ramblings,
06:20Charles Manson was able to gain the trust of several of these aimless young people.
06:24Perhaps more than anything, he was adept at finding people who yearned to belong,
06:28and appealing to them by feigning empathy and providing them with community and purpose.
06:33Then, he manipulated them into carrying out a series of senseless murders that shocked the world.
06:38-"Our conversation lasted an hour and a half, during which Manson was sometimes lucid,
06:43sometimes incoherent, and frequently manipulative."
06:46Keith Ranieri.
06:47-"Keith Ranieri had a checkered past as an alleged schemer and rip-off artist."
06:53The self-help guru at the helm of the NXIVM cult, Keith Ranieri claimed to be a genius.
06:58In fact, he built his entire persona around intelligence and ethics.
07:02Followers, including several celebrities, flocked to Ranieri,
07:06hoping to gain enlightenment and possibly even change the world.
07:09He made people feel seen and understood,
07:12and offered them a clear-cut path toward a better life via personal improvement classes.
07:16-"And if you step out of line, you get punished.
07:20You know, you get a lot of, like, strong thought control, you know, leveled at you."
07:25Through various levels of expensive and revealing seminars, workshops, and courses,
07:29NXIVM members could work their way to the top levels of the organization.
07:33On the surface, NXIVM seemed like an overzealous self-help group.
07:37But things were becoming more twisted within the group.
07:40Extreme control, emotional manipulation, and sexual abuse had become the norm.
07:45-"I'm cautious talking with you about it because I know
07:48you do believe in Keith's good intent, and I have for many years as well.
07:54But I'm starting to listen to my gut."
07:56Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh.
07:58-"We don't have a single thief.
08:03We don't have any crime."
08:07Described as a gifted lecturer, Indian mystic and spiritual leader Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh had
08:12a hypnotic way of delivering his messages that even critics and non-believers found compelling.
08:17The self-proclaimed guru used this exceptional talent to his advantage
08:20and amassed an impressive band of followers.
08:23-"We wondered, you know, who these people are,
08:26why are they here, how long are they gonna be here?"
08:30He issued traditional religions and embraced some unconventional philosophies,
08:34including spiritual materialism and free love.
08:37By the 1980s, his followers had taken up residence on a massive
08:41compound in Oregon called Rajneeshpuram.
08:43Eventually, they became embroiled in several illegal activities,
08:47including intentional food poisoning that affected hundreds of people.
08:51Rajneesh was deported soon after.
08:53-"Who would expect that, you know, it could unfold the way it unfolded, you know,
08:59you couldn't imagine that."
09:01David Koresh.
09:02-"David Koresh was a monster.
09:04He was a highly unstable, self-proclaimed messiah
09:09who used the Bible and used scriptures as a weapon."
09:12An unassuming drifter named Vernon Howell joined the Branch Davidians in the 1980s.
09:17Soon, he rose to prominence within the group,
09:20changed his name to David Koresh, and took over as their leader.
09:23Thanks to his photographic memory, Koresh could recite and interpret scripture on the spot.
09:28Word of his riveting sermons spread,
09:30prompting people to travel to the Branch Davidian compound to hear him speak in person.
09:35-"He was an embodiment of evil.
09:38He was the complete, absolute dictator of every facet of everyone's life."
09:43His soft-spoken presence was soothing and inspiring.
09:46Soon, he convinced his followers that he was the next messiah.
09:50Many insist that Koresh actually believed he was the messiah,
09:53and it was his unwavering faith in himself that made him so persuasive.
09:57Koresh and many of his followers perished in an ATF-led siege of the compound in 1993.
10:03-"Over seven weeks, it ended, apparently, with many deaths."
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10:25Jim Jones
10:26-"Started as an effort by a charismatic preacher to build a new society,
10:29but it ended, of course, with the tragic deaths of more than 900 people."
10:33The People's Temple was an unusual religious organization for its time.
10:37Centered around Christian ideology with communist and socialist influences,
10:41the sect grew to include over 2,000 followers at its peak.
10:45The infamous leader of the People's Temple, Jim Jones, possessed an uncommon magnetism.
10:50-"And then you have Jim Jones says, do I have the place for you,
10:53for us? All this racism and bigotry and turmoil will go away in your life."
11:00He was a talented orator who captivated his audience from the pulpit, preaching sermons
11:05about racial equality and building a new and better world. Jones appeared at first to be a
11:10well-intentioned spiritual leader, slowly revealing his more abusive and manipulative tactics over
11:16time. This calculated method of control allowed him to ultimately lead over 900 people willingly
11:22to a tragic fate. -"As soon as these pictures from Jonestown cleared our newsroom, everybody,
11:28even a lot of hardened news people reacted in horror and disbelief."
11:32Can you think of other charismatic leaders who used their talent for persuasion to influence
11:36those around them? Let us know in the comments. -"I didn't find God that way, so I kept searching."
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